A man, who bravely shared his penile cancer diagnosis publicly, has received a moving letter from His Majesty the King.
Roger Cartwright, 76, was diagnosed with penile cancer in 2012 and underwent surgery to try to remove a tumor just days after his diagnosis.
The radio host has bravely fought the disease, slowing it down significantly after several surgeries and participating in a vaccine trial.
Due to the delicate nature of his cancer, the retired academic has found it difficult to speak openly about his condition.
But hoping to end the stigma surrounding penile cancer, he shared his story publicly with a local newspaper, and King Charles III wrote Roger a letter of support.
Roger Cartwright, 76, who has been bravely battling penile cancer, received a moving letter from Her Majesty praising the former lieutenant for going public.
After King Charles III made his own diagnosis public in February, Cartwright approached the palace with a letter of support to Her Majesty.
After King Charles revealed his own cancer diagnosis in February, Roger sent a letter of thanks and support to Her Majesty and was stunned by the moving and wonderful response he received.
Roger reflected on how “humble” the response was to his article about his diagnosis, prompting him to thank the Royals when they made it public as well.
“When news broke about King Charles and Princess Catherine, I thought it was fantastic of them,” he said.
‘I could do a little, but they can do a lot more if they talk about it. Like many people, I wrote them a little note wishing them the best.
‘I included my experience and said I was particularly glad that the King had decided to do this, because what he said will have far more resonance than anything I can do.
“I thanked him and didn’t think about it anymore.”
However, on September 11, Roger and his beloved wife of 52 years, June, were greeted with a letter addressed to Lt. Cdr. Roger Cartwright, just around the corner.
Roger joked that they could have been “called to fight Putin”, before opening the letter to reveal a touching letter, wishing him well and thanking him for his work.
“I was touched to receive a more personal response from the Palace than I had ever expected,” Roger said.
“Normally there is a standard response to letters, and if I had expected any response, I would have expected something like this.”
Shortly after, he and June, his wife of 52 years, were greeted with a personal letter from the King full of support and encouragement.
The king (pictured with Queen Camilla) told Roger in the letter that he was “moved” to learn that he had been raising awareness of the disease.
‘It was from Buckingham Palace… and it was not addressed to Dr Cartwright, but to the Lieutenant Commander.’
“It wasn’t the standard response,” he explained. “There was a particular paragraph the King had heard about me not being well and my positive attitude encouraged him.”
‘He said he was especially moved to learn that I was becoming more aware of the signs and symptoms of cancer.
“I was touched that the King shared his problems with the world, because that wouldn’t have happened when I was young.
“I think what the king has done is going to be incredibly helpful for many cancer patients, and the same with Princess Kate.
“If this can encourage someone to see a doctor, who is worried about being examined because it’s personal and they don’t want anyone to know, then I’ve already done my bit.”
Roger, who also suffered two strokes in 2019, was not eager to go public with his diagnosis, but a doctor changed his mind and encouraged him to raise awareness.
“Penile cancer is quite rare and not the kind of topic you discuss at a dinner party, although I do nowadays,” he said.
The former Royal Naval Reserve officer continued: ‘It’s one of those things you’re not usually very open about.
‘I had been having problems for quite some time and the symptoms started to gradually get worse.
“My doctor in Dundee said he wasn’t happy and sent me to see a specialist, the only one who can treat this type of cancer in Scotland.”
Explaining that he had to work on a history cruise sailing halfway around the world as a history speaker, Roger told the doctor that he could operate on the tumor when he returned.
When the news about King Charles (pictured) and Princess Catherine was revealed, Roger thought their bravery and honesty was “fantastic”, as was their work raising cancer awareness.
‘I said everything would be fine, I will come back in three months and then we can operate. He told me: ‘no, you’ll be back in three days,’ and that’s what happened.
‘That was the first of many operations to try to get rid of this cancer.
The doctor then suggested that Roger participate in a vaccine trial in an attempt to find another way to effectively combat the disease.
“I wanted to try to get a shot that is normally given to teenage girls, because it might slow down the cancer.
“At that time there was talk of amputation, something that didn’t make me happy. As an academic, I thought that if it doesn’t work, we will learn as much by doing it as if it does work. I decided to move on.
‘This slowed things down considerably. It will never go away, but I have a very good advisor watching over me.’
